


Cranberry Wool

by sabaceanbabe



Category: Southern Vampire Mysteries
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2009-11-13
Updated: 2009-11-13
Packaged: 2017-10-02 14:16:24
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 485
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7292
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sabaceanbabe/pseuds/sabaceanbabe
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p><i>It was an ugly coat.  It didn't suit her.</i></p>
            </blockquote>





	Cranberry Wool

The blood stains on Sookie's coat were all-encompassing and the coat itself was old, parts of it threadbare. However the blood had gotten there, Eric was sure that he had somehow been involved. She'd never be able to entirely remove the discoloration or explain it away. And it was quite possible, perhaps even likely, that the stains were the result of an event that would cause her problems in her daily life.

Besides, it was an ugly coat. It didn't suit her.

He pushed the chair back and stood, reached for his leather jacket on its metal hook beside the best marketing tool the bar had had in years: the Men of Fangtasia Calendar, displaying Mr. January (Eric himself) for a few more days. It was early enough in the evening that the retail shops of Shreveport were still open for business and the bar wouldn't open for another hour yet--plenty of time for him to do a little shopping. He told Pam he'd return in an hour and walked out the back door.

The shop he had in mind wasn't far from Fangtasia, perhaps a ten-minute walk. The night was clear and cold, the brightest of the stars glittering like icy diamonds overhead even through the glare of the streetlights. He didn't bother with the car.

A brass bell over the shop door announced his entrance and a young woman came over to greet him and offer assistance--and, after a quick and expert assessment, whatever else he might want--but he waved her away. He'd already spotted exactly what he was looking for.

There was only one, fashioned of the finest wool, the removable liner made of silk that had been dyed exactly the same cranberry shade as the woolen outer shell. There was no question in his mind that it would fit Sookie as though it had been made for her, although it bothered him that he couldn't remember the details of how he knew this.

The lines of it were simple, practical, but the color and fabric spoke of something more, of boldness and determination, even a touch of elegance. Much like Sookie herself. Lifting the heavy coat from the rack, Eric smiled. For the first time in decades, he felt… anticipation.

After paying extra to have it delivered, he gave the clerk Sookie's address and added a card to the box that he signed simply, "Eric."

The girl smiled conspiratorially up at him. "Is this a gift for someone special?"

"Oh, yes," he replied, drawing the sounds out. Though Sookie herself would deny it, there was so much more to her than was at first apparent. And it wasn't just her gift, a mere accident of birth. She was fearless, ruthless when it came to those she cared for. The coat of cranberry wool would shout that to the world.

And it would look damned good on her, too.


End file.
